By: Mike Koury | Woodward Talk | Published August 19, 2025
OAKLAND COUNTY — The ballots for mayoral and city council races have been set for the November election.
Voters in the Nov. 4 election will cast their ballots for mayoral and city council or city commission elections in the cities of Ferndale, Berkley, Huntington Woods and Pleasant Ridge. Due to incumbents choosing not to run, it’s guaranteed that there will be new city council members in both Ferndale and Berkley.
Ferndale’s elections will see a competitive race for City Council. Incumbent Laura Mikulski will run along with Eddie Sabatini and Quinn Zeagler for two four-year terms.
The city’s mayoral race only has incumbent Raylon Leaks-May on the ballot, effectively making her the de facto winner of another two-year term.
Longtime Council member Greg Pawlica decided in July against running for another term, ending his tenure on the City Council after 12 years.
Pawlica said his decision not to run for reelection came as his job at Ford Motor Co. had changed over the past year with increased responsibilities.
“It’s going to require that I make a lot more time and effort into doing my job, and knowing the level of responsibilities and the time commitment necessary to be on council, I didn’t think that it would be fair for me to run again and be up there as just a vote,” he said. “Being on council requires you to be able to have time to meet with residents, to attend meetings that may be outside the area, attend forums and courses, classes. Not being able to … fulfill my obligations to me would be irresponsible.”
Reflecting on his 12 years as a member of council, Pawlica was proud of how the city has been able to improve its technology and its sewer lines.
The one thing he wished he could have started during his time was the creation of a tree nursery.
“It would require the dedication of maybe an acre or two of city property, maybe something in a park where it’s dedicated to plant seedlings, to have them mature and then plant them throughout the city,” he said. “Instead of buying eight to 10 12-foot trees that can cost anywhere from $100 to $150 and then planting them, we would actually nurture trees within the city that we could then transplant, thereby saving the city money and taking some trees that may be struggling, you know, we may have planted a tree last year, maybe it’s not doing so well in the place, you take that tree, put it in this property, and you take the time to nurse it back to health. That’s the one thing that I never was able to accomplish. I could not get a council to agree to invest in that project.”
Berkley’s City Council race also will be competitive, with five people running for three four-year terms. Incumbents Steve Baker and Dennis Hennen are running for reelection against Gary Elrod, Josh Stapp and Catherine Wade.
As with Ferndale, Berkley’s mayoral race is uncontested with incumbent Bridget Dean the lone person running for a two-year term.
Council member Jessica Vilani will be leaving after one term on the council. She said that serving was one of the greatest experiences of her life and that she learned a lot the past four years, but she wants to spend more time with her daughter before she heads off to college.
“When I first ran, it was right after COVID, my daughter was in the seventh grade. Life was really different, and I blinked and four years was up and we’re going on our first college tour tomorrow and she is entering into her junior year,” she said. “Just knowing that time is so limited and finite, and I really just want to soak as much of that up as possible with her before she goes off and starts her own adventures, I wanted to do that. So, I think that’s really the biggest reason, is just being able to prioritize family right now. It’s a bittersweet decision because I love the role, I love the community, I’ll still be doing everything I can to support our businesses, to stay involved, and you never know what will happen down the road, but right now my family is my No. 1 priority.”
Vilani said she’s proud to have helped implement a strategic plan in Berkley during her time and back issues pertaining to equality and making more inclusive spaces, including at council meetings. She also doesn’t rule out running for council again in the future.
“I wouldn’t rule it out … if that is something that I have the capacity to jump back into and it makes sense for my life,” she said. “Also for the city, I’m hopeful that we’ll have some new and fresh energy in there as well who will continue to take the city down this great path of growth that we’ve had over the past few years. So, I’m also excited to see what some new minds can do as well.”
As it stands now, the elections in Huntington Woods and Pleasant Ridge will see no changes on their respective city commissions, as the races are uncontested.
Incumbents Jules Olsman and Joe Rozell are running for four-year terms on the Huntington Woods City Commission against no competitors.
In Pleasant Ridge, incumbent Mayor Bret Scott is the only candidate on the ballot for another four-year term. In the city commissioner election, incumbents Alex Lenko and Katy Schmier are running without competition for reelection to four-year terms.